#19 – Newark, New Jersey
Newark, New Jersey is the next city on the list. It is the largest city in the state of New Jersey with more than 275,000 inhabitants according to the latest census. It is also the second largest city of the New York metropolitan area and it features one of the major ports for container shipping on the East Coast.
Newark was founded in 1666 by Robert Treat-led Connecticut Puritans who came from the New Haven Colony. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the city saw incredible industrial as well as population growth. During the 20th century, the racial tensions in the city grew and it all exploded in 1967, with the Newark Riots. The city has also seen a number of factories close, which had a negative influence on the city’s economy and, subsequently the education numbers.
Newark has a number of very different neighborhoods, which range from bustling urban areas to suburbs that look like something out of Desperate Housewives. The city is also home to numerous corporation headquarters like the PSEG, Panasonic Corporation of North America and Prudential Financial.
Newark is also home to the oldest county park in the entire country – the Newark Branch Brook Park, which features the country’s largest cherry blossom tree collection.
Newark has a number of universities, the most famous of which is definitely Rutgers. The others include New Jersey Institute of Technology and Seton Hall University Law School.
Newark made our list due to its relatively low percentage of people with bachelor’s degrees (9.0%) and high school education (57.9%)
